We Stand Together
by RubyFehu
Summary: Beth and Daryl never really had a strong relationship but when both Beth and Daryl finally feel ready to open up, the pair see an entirely new side to each other. One that they can't get off their mind. *Set during the time frame of them living in the prison onwards* Bethyl. Rated T for potential smut. Will put M if it's graphic.
1. Chapter 1

The tell-tale wail of a baby woke Daryl up with a start and he groaned loudly, as much as he liked the fact that Judith had survived, it was driving him crazy that she was doing… well, baby stuff. He huffed and slid out of his bed, draping his leather jacket on his shoulders as he did. He stalked out of his cell bedroom and looked around for Beth, sure enough she padded into sight on the upper floor, carrying Judith and rocking her, singing a lullaby to her in a low voice as she did. He didn't understand why Rick wasn't looking after his own daughter. Yes his wife was dead, but she was also and cheat and Rick had even told him that the baby could be Shane's but he was going to love her like her own. "What's wrong with her now?" He grumbled, stalking over to the metal stairs and starting up them.

"I don't know." Beth replied in her soft voice, however he detected that it was laced with exhaustion, "She's not hungry, she's been changed and she's not tired. But I am." Beth moaned, as she continued bouncing the baby on her hip.

"Where is Rick? Or Carl?"

"Out lookin' for supplies. Will you take her? I'm gonna try an' find my daddy. He's the only parent here at the moment." Beth held the still bawling child out to Daryl and hesitantly he took her. She hiccupped before looking up at him with wide brown eyes.

"Hurry up." He told Beth, holding Judith gingerly as if she were a little doll.

"Yeah, don't worry. If I can't find daddy I'll get Maggie or Glenn."

Daryl made a noise of recognition as he continued to hold Judith at arm's length. Beth hurried past him and he watched over his shoulder as she left, the door slamming shut behind her.

Daryl turned back to Judith and wrinkled his nose a little, it wasn't that he didn't like kids. He did, it's just he didn't think he was any good with them. Carefully he brought Judith closer to him and held her delicately. She cooed a little and grabbed at his hair whilst he felt something which he hoped was saliva dribble down his bare arms. He grimaced a little, "Nice… at least you stopped your whinin'." He muttered, "Why couldn't you have just fallen asleep on Beth." He muttered to her. Rolling his eyes, he started down the stairs and made his way to the door, balancing Judith carefully in one arm when he opened the door.

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><p>Grumbling under his breath, Daryl navigated the prison and eventually managed to push the main doors open just as Beth was approaching them again. He glared down at her before trying to hand Judith back to her but to his dismay the baby had a surprisingly tight grip. "Lil' ass kicker fell asleep as soon as you left. She musta been sick of your singing." He growled, he regretted his words as soon as they passed his lips because Beth's expression dropped and her eyes became slightly glassy. He actually liked her singing but he was just… pissed right now, Judith had woken him up only to fall straight to sleep. "Sorry…" He said in a low voice. "Will you take her back? I wanna go huntin'"<p>

Beth fixed him with a steady gaze and tried to hold herself high, she had a tendency to try and brush off any feelings she didn't want, but more often than not she was unsucessful. "I would but my terrible singing might wake her up again." She replied coolly. Daryl couldn't help but smirk a little at her words. "Well there's only one way to see ain't there?" He moved Judith from his shoulder and held her to Beth, the child started to whimper and wriggle at finding herself in midair but soon settled when Beth rested her against her shoulder and started stroking her hair. The pair held their gaze for a moment before Daryl turned and started to walk off. "For the record, your singin' ain't that bad." He called over his shoulder to Beth.

"Oh, I know." She replied confidently and he couldn't contain the throaty laugh that passed his lips.

* * *

><p>As Daryl made his way back to the cell block he couldn't help but smile, Beth really had come out of her shell a little since they came to the prison. She did still have her moments, however. He liked how he could now have a bit of playful banter between them and not worry about offending her or if he did, she'd get her own back. When he reached his cell, he draped his trusty crossbow over his shoulders and refilled it with arrows. Holding it up to his eyes he smiled contently and nodded. The sound of footsteps startled him and he spun around with his weapon still armed. "I surrender Daryl." The familiar voice of Rick said, it was playful but laced with the tone of a man since given up.<p>

"Oh, sorry Rick." He murmured. Lowering his weapon, "I was just goin' out huntin'."

"Why? We have food, there's no need to."

"I know, but I wanna. I'm tired of being cooped up."

"Well, how are you going to get out?"

"There's a little hole in the fence. It's boarded up with wood but the walkers are stupid and don't realise you can just nudge it, crawl and get out."

Rick frowned as he looked Daryl. "If I let you go, will you take someone with you?"

"If I go without your permission can I go alone?"

"Yes, but if the walkers didn't kill you. I would." Rick warned, half playful, half serious.

"Alright, I'll take someone with me."

"Beth." Rick said promptly.

"What! Why Beth?" Daryl exclaimed and Rick smirked.

"Because Daryl, she spends all her time 'cooped up' too looking after Judith. She needs to get out, hone her fighting skills. Besides, you and her have got such a rivalry going on, it is about time you both worked together to try and sort it out. We're a team Daryl."

Daryl scowled but nodded a little, "Fine, I'll take her hunting. But we're not going to become best of friends by the time I'm back, you got that?"

"She's outside with Judith." Rick replied, ignoring the final bit of what Daryl had to say.

"Yeah I know." Daryl grumbled before slinking off out the cell block again.

* * *

><p>An hour later Daryl and Beth found themselves in the midst of the forest behind the prison, the walkers – or the majority of them were at the front of the prison being stabbed. "Alright Beth, you keep an eye out. I'll do the huntin'."<p>

"Fine by me."

"Don't even talk to me."

"I'll do what I want."

Daryl looked at Beth with disbelief and had to fight back the scowl. "If you talk I won't listen."

"Sure you will, you can't exactly gag me."

"I would if I could." He muttered to himself darkly.

"What was that?" Beth asked perkily and Daryl dropped his crossbow, rolling his eyes he turned to her.

"I didn't say a thing darlin'." He replied sarcastically, Beth narrowed her eyes and sent an elbow into his side. He inhaled sharply and gritted his teeth, glaring down at Beth. "Just keep moving." With that he led the way with his crossbow raised again and his gaze on the ground looking for any signs of animal tracks.

The pair walked in silence when Daryl picked up what he knew to be deer tracks, although he knew Beth was probably fighting with herself not to speak, but the girl was smart enough not to push her luck when Daryl Dixon was on to something. They made their way through the trees and Daryl froze when he caught sight of a tawny colour amongst the trees, he held out a hand to stop Beth in her tracks and raised his fingers to her lips. Beth quirked her eyebrow in a way that meant if she could talk there would be some kind of sarcastic comment. He pointed to the grazing doe and Beth peeked through the leaves, a smile making its way onto her porcelain face. Daryl glanced briefly to the side at her before turning his attention back to his weapon and prey. Biting his bottom lip he aimed carefully before squeezing the trigger. With an incredible swiftness the arrow hurtled towards the deer and embedded itself in the head. The doe fell to the ground like a brick. "Sorry Bambi, mom's not comin' home tonight." Daryl said smugly, he pushed the branches back and made his way to the dead prey with Beth close behind him.

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><p>Daryl was about to pick up the doe when a low groan and snapping twigs caught his attention. Without a word he and Beth were back to back. "Don't let your guard down." He said quietly to Beth, he felt the blonde nod and her arms reaching for the sheathed knife in her belt. After a few painful seconds a zombie burst through the trees and made a beeline for Daryl. Pressing the trigger of his crossbow again he shot the walker in the head before moving from Beth to retrieve it when the creature fell to the ground, he stamped on the chest and yanked his arrow out. Almost immediately the trees began to shake again and Daryl snapped his gaze up in time to see a small hoard of walkers coming towards them, all snarling and clawing the air as they made their way to the pair. "Crap." Daryl breathed, standing up he armed his crossbow and started to fire at them. He turned on his heel to face Beth as a few more walkers came at them, whilst Beth was managing to stab them in the head she wasn't as quick as his crossbow and so he stealthily shot the three that were circling her. Beth spun to face him with a small, yet grateful smile before her eyes widened. "Daryl behind you!"<p>

Just as Daryl turned around, a walker dived on him, pushing him to the ground, his crossbow flew from his hand and landed just out of arms reach. Although winded, Daryl tried to wrestle with the creature, but struggled slightly as it seemed to press its full weight on him and every time he moved the walker snapped at him, causing him to recoil to avoid being bitten. He started to strain his neck whilst avoiding the walker until he was covered in warm blood and guts. Panting, he pushed the carcass off him and sat up, spitting brain matter from his mouth. Glancing up he flicked his hair from his eyes and nodded at Beth in thanks. The young girl placed her knife back in its halter before going over to the doe and picking it up by the legs, Daryl took her forepaws and carefully the pair started back to the prison, small talk starting to ensue between them after Daryl voiced his thanks.

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><p><strong>AN So yeah, after that heartbreaking scene in Walking Dead I realised just how much I ship Daryl and Beth and so I decided to give this a shot. For the ages Beth is 17 and I'm going to put Daryl as being roughly 35, now before people kick off. I know there is a HUGE age gap between them but age is just a number and to be honest during the zombie apocalypse you can't afford to be picky. **

**I'm going to try and use as much as I can remember from the episodes we saw but change it slightly so we can see their day to day stuff. The romance between Daryl and Beth isn't going to be immediate I'm going to work up to it. I MAY change the ending though because I think there could have been so much potential once the group were reunited in season 5 so I may explore that. I may also have Judith with Beth and Daryl when they get separated because Beth is so good with her and I just love seeing Daryl going all soft when it comes to little ass kicker hehe.**

**I'll stop rambling now, I hope you enjoyed it, feel free to follow, fave or review 3 **


	2. Chapter 2

Rick stood in the Guard tower at the Prison, taking his turn to watch the area, when a sight he never imagined coming across caught his eye – Daryl and Beth laughing and talking together. His jaw dropped in a rather comedic manner. "Well then." He murmured under his breath before climbing down the ladder and jogging to meet them at the gap in the wall. "You're both alive then." He said as way of greeting, Daryl raised his eyebrow as the pair dropped the doe down.

**"Well, it has been three years since this outbreak, a little bit of hunting is nothin' nowadays."**

**"No, I mean you and Beth haven't killed each other."** Rick pointed out and the pair exchanged a look.

**"Well, why would we have?"** Beth asked, slightly amused.

**"I never saw a greater rivalry between companions than I did between you two."**

**"Yeah, well. Shit happens."** Daryl said with a shrug.

**"He probably won't kill me because I saved his life."** Beth piped up with a grin.

**"Nah you didn't."**

**"Daryl, if I hadn't been there you would have been walker food."**

**"I could have managed."**

**"Your crossbow was out of reach and the walker was right on top of you."**

**"I still could have managed."** Daryl grumbled but the faintest of smiles appeared.

Rick raised an eyebrow at their banter as he looked between them. This was certainly something he never would have expected, they were complete opposites. Beth was friendly, shy and sweet and Daryl, well Daryl was bold, outspoken and no stranger to the ways of adult life. He rubbed the back of his neck before turning and walking away from the pair, revealing the dismayed expression he'd been withholding when speaking to them. Never did he imagine he'd see the day that Beth Greene and Daryl Dixon would be smiling and joking together.

* * *

><p>Daryl watched Rick's retreating figure before turning to Beth who was wearing an amused expression, <strong>"Well that was an interestin' conversation."<strong> Beth mused.

**"You said it darlin'. Now come on, I have an idea what to do with this doe."**

**"Oh?"**

**"I'm going to make a blanket out of its pelt."**

**"A blanket?"** Beth repeated, blinking a few times as she stared at him.

**"Yep, if there's ever an overnight hunt for supplies, it can go with and warm someone up."**

**"Smart thinkin'."**

**"Well obviously. C'mon."** He said as he grabbed the hind paws and Beth grabbed the front again. **"It's my turn to keep guard I think, I can do it there."**

**"Can I come?"** Beth asked hopefully and Daryl looked at her in surprise.

**"Well you could, but are you sure? Don't you wanna babysit lil ass kicker?"**

**"Carl has her I think, it's about time dad, son and daughter spent some time together."**

**"How do you know Rick will go with Carl?"**

**"He always does when he's not on duty."** Beth said with a dismissive shrug.

**"Well fine, but you listen and do as I say."**

**"Yes Mr Dixon."** She replied with a playful salute, Daryl rolled his eyes but said no more as the pair made their way to the guard town.

* * *

><p>It was a struggle getting the dead animal up into the tower but after much struggling and expected backache, the pair managed to carry it up with difficulty – Daryl had draped the body over his back and used his elbows to hold it in place and Beth had been holding it with one hand as a little extra support for Daryl. Without a thought Daryl dropped it off his shoulders onto the floor with a thud and slumped down, cross legged in front of it. Beth watched as he unsheathed a knife before sitting across from him and doing the same. <strong>"You ever gutted an animal?"<strong>

**"Nah, daddy tended to take care of animals. But we won't need to gut it if we're only taking its fur."**

**"True, but just in case you need to know for the future, I'll teach you eventually."**

Beth raised an eyebrow. **"What are you up to Daryl?"**

**"Nothin' why?"**

**"You're being friendly all of a sudden."**

Daryl let out a breath and leaned back against the wall with his hands behind his head,** "Well you did save my life."** He started in a slightly mocking manner. **"But I'll be honest Beth, I didn't think you had it in you. You proved you did by killin' that walker. I think skinning a deer will be a pinch of salt for you."**

**"Why thank you for your consideration."** She replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes with an amused smile. Before Daryl could say anything Beth stabbed her knife in the deer and dragged it to the right, leaving a large gash in its side. **"You don't mind a bit of blood do ya?"**

Daryl grinned approvingly before stabbing the deer in the open wound and moving his knife to the left, causing it to be severed in half. **"Nah, I'm good. Anyway kid, this is the hardest part. We need to try and peel enough of the skin and fur back so that it doesn't fall apart but not so much that we'd get blood all over."** He explained. Daryl looked up at Beth who was watching him intently and he felt an unusual feeling in his gut, as he looked at her, he felt like he was looking at her for the first time. Her beautifully rounded grey eyes were curious and twinkling with anticipation, and her lips were curled up in a cute little smile that made him want to grin back at her. She cocked her head to one side and he realised that he'd been looking a little too long. Clearing his throat he tore his eyes away from hers unwillingly and looked down at the doe. His head was a mess at the moment, he couldn't focus. That smile – it had left its mark in his mind. **"Right, yeah, if you just angle your knife towards you ever so slightly and cut at it as if it were a piece of meat; that would be a good starting point. Like this."** He tucked his knife into the flesh wound and held the handle towards his chest. Steadily he cut upwards, sawing back and forth until the knife was inches from the fur. **"Now you just do this."** He continued before cutting and slicing along the length of the deer. **"You need to be careful though; you're probably best coming and sitting beside me so we can work from the same bit so we don't break it in half accidently or somethin'."**

Beth nodded in understanding and shuffled over to sit to his left, carefully she leaned forward and began to imitate Daryl; the older man watched her closely, nodding every now and again. He was _trying _to make sure she was doing it right but the way some loose curls had escaped from her ponytail and were now framing her delicate features made it rather difficult to focus. He bit down on his lip and turned away from her, glaring at the floor he tried to rid himself of his thoughts before he resumed skinning the deer.

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><p>Once Beth and Daryl had finished the start of their makeshift blanket he stood and took his place once more, looking out into the woods, he fully expected Beth to go back inside and leave him now that they'd finished the deer blanket but instead he felt something warm wrap around his shoulders and he looked over in surprise to see Beth had taken up a place by her side and the warmth was their blanket being wrapped over him, he took one end and tucked it under his elbow whilst Beth moved closer to his side and did the same. He knew how nerve-rackingly close they were stood and how warmth flared up inside of him, but not from the blanket. As he stared down at the young girl he realised with slight annoyance that these gooey feelings of warmth were in fact the hints that his feelings for Beth had grown. He bit his lip and shook his head, not wanting to admit it. He vowed never to fall in love or even crush on a girl, it always left him the most vulnerable, he'd always promised to allow himself to love only his family during this outbreak, but as he continued to think, she was technically his family for this situation. Their little group had gone through so much that other groups may have escaped. He sighed in annoyance a little, he wouldn't let himself grow any fonder of Beth and if he did he would <em>never <em>act on his feelings. As Merle always said, a woman made a man weaker, and he was right. In the here and now Daryl knew that he would protect her as much as he would the rest of his surrogate family, but maybe he would care for her more. **"Daryl?"** She asked and he was brought down to earth with a thud.

**"Hm?"**

**"What are you thinkin' about?"**

**"Nothin' why?"**

**"It's just your starin' at me and you look deep in thought."**

**"I was just letting my mind wander. I was thinking about the group."** He offered rather lamely. Beth tilted her head to the other side and shrugged.

**"If you say so."**

* * *

><p>Carol who had appeared to take over Daryl's shift, silently and agilely made her way up to the tower was pleasantly surprised to see the pair stood side by side, laughing and talking as they looked out over their surroundings for walkers. She lowered herself a little so they wouldn't notice her, not that they would anyway because they both had their backs turned. She glanced to the floor where a skinned deer carcass lay. Looking up at them again her gaze roved over Daryl and she smiled. First she noticed that the pair had the fur of the deer draped over their shoulders, obviously keeping them warm from the cold evening air, but the second thing she noticed was this was the most at ease she'd seen him since Merle had died and as he watched Beth wipe some dry blood off his cheek with her sleeve she was even more pleased to see that he didn't flinch and move away from her touch like he usually did. Right now Daryl was his old self, completely at ease and relaxed. Maybe he was even like how he was before the whole outbreak happened, she didn't know. What she did know though was she really liked this seemingly new Daryl. With another small smile she clambered back down the guard tower and made her way back to the cell where she was greeted by a confused looking Rick, <strong>"What are you doing back? It's your turn to take watch."<strong> He scolded and Carol shook her head at him.

**"I think Daryl is just fine keeping watch still."**

**"What?"**

**"Go and see for yourself."**

Rick stared at the knowing smile on Carol's lips for a few moments before he looked past her and up at the guard tower. **"If you say so."**

**"I think the next watch will be Maggie and Glenn."** Carol said before turning and walking off.

* * *

><p>Rick watched Carol leave before he started towards where he knew Daryl to be. He skirted along the foot of the large tower until he could hear faint voices. <strong><em>"We're all family Daryl."<em>**

**"_I know that, Beth. And we'll always look out for them, the bond our group have is stronger than any I've seen by far. Rick has done a damn good job at keeping order without making people hate him."_**

**"_You've helped too."_**

**"_I know but Rick is the leader. I'm tired of the group giving him grief just for doing the right thing."_**

**"_They'll soon learn. Besides he definitely has us and Glenn, Maggie, daddy, Carol and Carl all behind him. Even though we're few in numbers our loyalty is incredibly fierce."_**

**"_Don't forget Michonne. She may not show it, but she respects Rick greatly."_**

**"_Yep."_**

Rick smiled to himself, not at the praise he was receiving but at the fact that in the two short hours they'd been hunting Daryl and Beth had struck up an unlikely bond. And having two of his most loyal followers so close together, outweighed plenty. Carol was right, they were just fine until Maggie and Glenn took over. Shaking his head with the smile still on his lips he turned and walked into the darkness, back to the cell block he knew the group to be vacating at the moment.

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><p><span><strong>AN So I decided to try something new, I've found that when I'm reading it's a bit of a struggling to make out speech from narration and also speech from each person so I've put all the speech in bold. The only reason the last bit is in both bold and italics is because Rick is supposed to be listening from a slight distance (low down) so it's a bit muffled AND the fact he's technically eavesdropping :').**

**Anyway, let me know if you like the new way of separating speech or if you liked it as it was back in chapter 1. If no one does say which they like I'll just continue this because, personally, I prefer the speech layout like this.**

**And like last time, feel free to follow, fave and review but no obligation to of course ^-^**


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